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What you need to know before taking the step from first home to family home

Moving to a new house in any way can be a huge undertaking and requires adequate thought and planning on behalf you and everyone moving with you.

This is especially pertinent when you are moving from your first or starter home to a family home.

CEO of Greeff Christie's International Real Estate, Mike Greeff, says that moving from the first home you owned to the home that you will call your family home is of course a decision that will not take place overnight. "It will be a decision you come to over a period of time but once this decision has been made can you generally want to move ahead with the process confidently and swiftly."

There are, however, some things to definitely consider in order to ensure that the process is as smooth as possible. Here is a checklist that you may find helpful.

Choose a home that you are likely to live in for an extended period of time, yielding more profit
Emerging areas are extremely valuable to the property market and can be equally profitable to you in future if you choose to buy in an area that is set to flourish. Once you have lived in the home for a while you may choose to renovate, add on to and increase the value of the property as you see fit.

According to FNB's latest Property Barometer, had you invested R1 million in cash in the bank in the year 2000 at 8% per annum and left it in the bank to appreciate, you would have R4 315 701.06 today. If you however purchased a home for R1 million in 2000 and did sell, your property would now be worth R7 615 600.63, showing the vast profits homeowners stand to make when choosing to invest in property.

Choose a home that will suit you and your family.

One of the most important decisions you will make, is choosing a property that will become the home of you and your family. Having purchased a property before, you would be familiar with the process of looking for specific features. The features list is sure to

be quite different when searching for a family home. Space, practicality and a property that is versatile enough to change in tune with the dynamics of the family are just a few prerequisites of the new property.

During this search, be sure to look at the size of the property and the size of all of the rooms. Perhaps you and your spouse are married with a baby on the way, perhaps you are not expecting as yet, if so, you should be looking at properties that would suit your family lifestyle in the best way possible.

Consider your surrounding areas.

This could be one of the most important aspects overall. Considering your area means taking into account what is around you and how you can live a full life in this area you have chosen. The area you choose needs to have access to all the necessary amenities, attractions and transport arterial routes. Are all of these within close proximity to you? How far is the travelling distance? How will this impact your commute to work every day? How far away are the schools, healthcare facilities and extra-mural activities? Once you have considered this, you will be able to make the final decision.

Making the leap from a home that you have lived in on your own to a home you will now move to with your family is one of the hallmarks of new beginnings and what better way to embrace this than by taking this next exciting step with complete confidence.